DJ and I arrived in Atlanta on Christmas Day after spending the morning eating Monkey Bread Muffins (which were divine), opening our stockings (which were filled with candy, mind puzzles, UT paraphernalia, makeup and the like...) and packing like fiends (since we chose to wait till the last minute, it was a bit of a frenzy and as DJ stated best, it was the epitome of over packing).
A couple of hours after we arrived, we were treated to a Christmas dinner of roast beef, turkey, tilapia, mashed potatoes, sweet potato souffle, green beans, rolls and the most wide array of yummy desserts that you can imagine. I can now say that I've had dinner with Lane Kiffin and his wife. Granted we didn't sit at the same table but who cares about the details. Details, shmetails.
DJ had to work the rest of the night and I contemplated what the coming week would hold as I sat in the hotel room surrounded by four walls that were quickly closing in on me, somewhat suffocatingly. I think I was sort of tired and a little delirious after not getting much sleep the two nights before and then not eating anything but sugar all day so I actually considered going home and coming back when DJ's parents arrived but thankfully I realized this was just the delirium talking and DJ convinced me that it would be best to stay.
So far, I'm glad I did.
The next day, I slept in while DJ woke up at the crack of dawn. He's not been getting much sleep since we got here. We go to bed really late (read: 12 or 1 in the morning) and then he has to wake up and get to the training room by about 7 usually. I, on the other hand, have been sleeping till about 10, lazing around, watching movies, reaing my book and finally showering and then investigating the activities around the hotel. I determined before arriving that I would be treating myself to a Starbucks every morning since there is one in the lobby of the hotel. I've gotta have something to motivate me to shower and leave my hotel room!
Today is the first day I've had Internet (unless I wanted to pay $16 at the hotel for one day's worth of internet - ONE DAY. Ummm, no.) and I sit right now in the Starbucks a couple blocks down from the hotel surrounded by loud teenagers enjoying the access to the outside world via the World Wide Web. I love it.
Now, I'm off to meet my husband and go explore Atlanta! I can't wait to explore this historic city - there is so much to see and do!
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
ANOTHER Maia Adventure
Yesterday I was sitting at work, focusing as much as one could two days before the Christmas vacation would begin, and I get a call from my husband.
Husband: Do we have hydrogen peroxide?
Me: Yes.
Husband: Where is it? (sounding a bit frantic I notice now)
Me: Um, uhhh (I was feeling a little pressure to recall something that I had no idea how to recall) I don't know why what's wrong? **kicking myself mentally and thinking why on earth I didn't know where the stupid hydrogen peroxide was**
Husband: (kind of babbling and not making a whole lot of sense) Maia was whimpering and I think she ate her leash and I came and looked and I need the hydrogen peroxide and where is it?
I proceeded to try and think as hard as I could without hurting myself of where I might have put that stupid brown bottle that was eluding us at the moment. Every place I suggested came up empty. Finally I said that he should call the vet because that was our only option at this point.
Once I got off the phone, I was somewhat smug at first that DJ finally "got" to experience a Maia adventure. Every other time I've had to rush her to the vet, DJ was either thousands of miles away or busy at work and didn't understand the level of hysterics that such an "adventure" can cause. Now he was getting a little taste of it himself. (moowahahaa)
Then I started getting a little tiny bit worried and the amount of worry that I heard in DJ's voice started to get to me. But I quickly squashed it deep down and told myself I was being silly and Maia would be fine. She always is.
Once DJ got Maia to the vet and knew she was being taken care of, he had calmed down a little bit and called me back. That's when he told me that Maia had eaten 3 FEET of her leash. I started getting worried again. What DOG eats her leash? What DOG eats 3 FEET of her leash? WHY Maia? WHY?? She never ceases to baffle me. I just don't understand what goes on in that little squishy wrinkly fuzzy soft head of hers.
They did a couple of x rays (and clipped her nails, took care of some other, ahem, necessities that I will spare you of the details, checked her infection-prone ears, basically gave her a little spa day) and sent DJ and Maia on their way. "The leash will pass," they said. "We injected some saline solution to make it really slick, so the leash should certainly pass." Oh, thank goodness. Once again we have evaded the dreaded "s" word....surgery.
We played with her. She was fine. Normal Maia antics, just fine. We fed her. She gobbled it up, no problem. We took her out to potty. Not a big deal. Everything was fine.
So we were a little surprised when this morning, I woke to the sound of my poor little puppy vomiting. I jumped up, yelled at DJ that Maia threw up and confusedly tried to put on my glasses and walk out into the hall where Maia was and turned on the light.
Yep, not a pretty sight.
She was sick alright...
She had thrown up all OVER her crate. One of the upchucks had produced part of the leash so I was still hopeful at that point. I thought that was probably a good sign since she was just getting rid of the nasty leash. DJ had a different perspective since the vet told him that throwing up was not a good sign. So we decided to watch her and see if she was ok after that.
No good.
She threw up two more times.
So it was back to the vet for DJ and Maia (thankfully, DJ had the day off today) and I headed off to work, quite sure that today Maia would have to endure a surgery. (Or should I say WE would have to endure the surgery BILL.) Sure enough, the vet recommended we do surgery right away since tomorrow and Christmas were holidays and the vet clinic would not be open so of course, we agreed and Maia went under the knife.
Thankfully after the surgery was over and we were debriefed, we found out that Maia is healthy as a horse. (As parents, we are always glad to hear that, of course. It's because we feed her only the BEST dog food, you know.) AND we got a two-fer-one because the vet was able to fix a hernia that Maia apparently had from where her umbilical cord had not completely healed properly so yay! The vet said it wouldn't even cost us extra. God bless you woman. They took out a LOT of leash bits. She had chewed three feet of leash into about 7 or 8 pieces and promptly swallowed them, piece. by. piece. How diligent. (I would have a picture at this point but apparently, DJ thought it was gross, even though I thought it just looked like wet pieces of leash. Whatev.)
So Maia is ok. Thank God. But I miss her to death now. She has to stay at the vet for observation for two days and because they are closed for Christmas Eve and Christmas, we can't see her before we leave for Atlanta. AND because they are also closed on New Year's Day, we can't pick her up until the day after we get back. So that's 11 WHOLE days until I see my baby again. **Tear** We did get to go visit her today but I'm pretty sure she didn't even know we were there. And if she did know it at the time, she won't remember because they had her completely drugged. She had an IV in so they didn't want her to mess with it. It was so sadly sweet. She just laid there and kind of dragged her eyes open every once in awhile to peer up at us with watery glazed over eyes. We petted her and told her we loved her very much and stroked her very soft head and then after just 5 minutes, we left. I mean, we didn't want the doctor vet lady to think we were obsessed or anything. Cause we're not.
So Maia will be kept in the recovery "room" for the next day or two and then she will be taken to the boarding area, where I will imagine them loving on her, and cuddling her and making sure that she doesn't bother her stitches. Basically taking care of her as well as I would. (No one burst my bubble here. I KNOW that they are going to do everything they can to make her feel comfortable and safe and secure and like her parents haven't abandoned her forever.) And they will give her antibiotics and essentially take on all the responsibilities that we would have otherwise had to do ourselves. I feel like I am getting a small glimpse of what Britney Spears must feel like. Just pay people to do all the dirty work for you. I could get used to this.
Husband: Do we have hydrogen peroxide?
Me: Yes.
Husband: Where is it? (sounding a bit frantic I notice now)
Me: Um, uhhh (I was feeling a little pressure to recall something that I had no idea how to recall) I don't know why what's wrong? **kicking myself mentally and thinking why on earth I didn't know where the stupid hydrogen peroxide was**
Husband: (kind of babbling and not making a whole lot of sense) Maia was whimpering and I think she ate her leash and I came and looked and I need the hydrogen peroxide and where is it?
I proceeded to try and think as hard as I could without hurting myself of where I might have put that stupid brown bottle that was eluding us at the moment. Every place I suggested came up empty. Finally I said that he should call the vet because that was our only option at this point.
Once I got off the phone, I was somewhat smug at first that DJ finally "got" to experience a Maia adventure. Every other time I've had to rush her to the vet, DJ was either thousands of miles away or busy at work and didn't understand the level of hysterics that such an "adventure" can cause. Now he was getting a little taste of it himself. (moowahahaa)
Then I started getting a little tiny bit worried and the amount of worry that I heard in DJ's voice started to get to me. But I quickly squashed it deep down and told myself I was being silly and Maia would be fine. She always is.
Once DJ got Maia to the vet and knew she was being taken care of, he had calmed down a little bit and called me back. That's when he told me that Maia had eaten 3 FEET of her leash. I started getting worried again. What DOG eats her leash? What DOG eats 3 FEET of her leash? WHY Maia? WHY?? She never ceases to baffle me. I just don't understand what goes on in that little squishy wrinkly fuzzy soft head of hers.
They did a couple of x rays (and clipped her nails, took care of some other, ahem, necessities that I will spare you of the details, checked her infection-prone ears, basically gave her a little spa day) and sent DJ and Maia on their way. "The leash will pass," they said. "We injected some saline solution to make it really slick, so the leash should certainly pass." Oh, thank goodness. Once again we have evaded the dreaded "s" word....surgery.
We played with her. She was fine. Normal Maia antics, just fine. We fed her. She gobbled it up, no problem. We took her out to potty. Not a big deal. Everything was fine.
So we were a little surprised when this morning, I woke to the sound of my poor little puppy vomiting. I jumped up, yelled at DJ that Maia threw up and confusedly tried to put on my glasses and walk out into the hall where Maia was and turned on the light.
Yep, not a pretty sight.
She was sick alright...
She had thrown up all OVER her crate. One of the upchucks had produced part of the leash so I was still hopeful at that point. I thought that was probably a good sign since she was just getting rid of the nasty leash. DJ had a different perspective since the vet told him that throwing up was not a good sign. So we decided to watch her and see if she was ok after that.
No good.
She threw up two more times.
So it was back to the vet for DJ and Maia (thankfully, DJ had the day off today) and I headed off to work, quite sure that today Maia would have to endure a surgery. (Or should I say WE would have to endure the surgery BILL.) Sure enough, the vet recommended we do surgery right away since tomorrow and Christmas were holidays and the vet clinic would not be open so of course, we agreed and Maia went under the knife.
Thankfully after the surgery was over and we were debriefed, we found out that Maia is healthy as a horse. (As parents, we are always glad to hear that, of course. It's because we feed her only the BEST dog food, you know.) AND we got a two-fer-one because the vet was able to fix a hernia that Maia apparently had from where her umbilical cord had not completely healed properly so yay! The vet said it wouldn't even cost us extra. God bless you woman. They took out a LOT of leash bits. She had chewed three feet of leash into about 7 or 8 pieces and promptly swallowed them, piece. by. piece. How diligent. (I would have a picture at this point but apparently, DJ thought it was gross, even though I thought it just looked like wet pieces of leash. Whatev.)
So Maia is ok. Thank God. But I miss her to death now. She has to stay at the vet for observation for two days and because they are closed for Christmas Eve and Christmas, we can't see her before we leave for Atlanta. AND because they are also closed on New Year's Day, we can't pick her up until the day after we get back. So that's 11 WHOLE days until I see my baby again. **Tear** We did get to go visit her today but I'm pretty sure she didn't even know we were there. And if she did know it at the time, she won't remember because they had her completely drugged. She had an IV in so they didn't want her to mess with it. It was so sadly sweet. She just laid there and kind of dragged her eyes open every once in awhile to peer up at us with watery glazed over eyes. We petted her and told her we loved her very much and stroked her very soft head and then after just 5 minutes, we left. I mean, we didn't want the doctor vet lady to think we were obsessed or anything. Cause we're not.
So Maia will be kept in the recovery "room" for the next day or two and then she will be taken to the boarding area, where I will imagine them loving on her, and cuddling her and making sure that she doesn't bother her stitches. Basically taking care of her as well as I would. (No one burst my bubble here. I KNOW that they are going to do everything they can to make her feel comfortable and safe and secure and like her parents haven't abandoned her forever.) And they will give her antibiotics and essentially take on all the responsibilities that we would have otherwise had to do ourselves. I feel like I am getting a small glimpse of what Britney Spears must feel like. Just pay people to do all the dirty work for you. I could get used to this.
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Christmas at the Martinez's
At last my house feels like a home. I love the feeling of walking in the door and just feeling like you belong, that feeling of family.Unfortunately I think a lot of it has to do with my Christmas decorations. Which makes me wonder what the sense of hominess is going to do when I take down the Christmas decor. I hope it doesn't decide to leave.
Though I guess we'll cross that bridge when we get there.
In the mean time, share in the hominess with me...
Glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace, goodwill toward men! Luke 2:14
Even Maia feels right at home. (*Big sigh of contentment*)
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Thanksgiving Happenings
Yes, I know that we're 8 days from Christmas so I'm way past due talking about Thanksgiving but I gotta get it documented, ya know? But I AM going to do it all in one post and stick to the highlights so here we go!
As you know my parents and brother came down from SD to spend the week with us and we were going, going, going the minute I picked them up from the airport. One of the smaller, but no less important, highlights was waking up each morning and drinking coffee together as we caught up on everything and discussed what we would do for the day. (I was also reminded of the vast amount of coffee that my parents consume on a daily basis. We're talking, at least 3 pots were consumed every morning and Chace and I probably each had one cup each. MAYBE 1.5 cups each. So that leaves the rest of the 2.5 POTS for my mom and dad. I think I have a small inkling of where a lot of my mom's energy comes from...) Not only do I love just sitting around and having a good cup of coffee in the morning but it was great to share the time with my family and just...be.
Another highlight, which we will forever remember for a number of reasons, was going to the Kentucky/Vols football game. In Kentucky. I had told my mom that when they were here we would have to visit another state since we live so close to so many and we did! And this wasn't even a planned excursion initially but when I realized how close it actually was, I knew we had to do it because this would be the only opportunity for my parents to see a game. And I'm so glad we did! The Vols won in overtime and it was the last game of the season so that win clinched us a good bowl game.
Our quarterback Jonathan Crompton
It always cracks me up when the team does its pregame stretches.
Our coach Lane Kiffin - what always cracks me up about him is that it always looks like he's a little boy wearing daddy's clothes. His shirts are always HUGE!
And this would be the hubs.
I love telephoto lenses! It looks like I'm standing right next to him huh?
It was a little smoky from the Kentucky team's introduction... I think they did that on purpose so we couldn't see our own team enter the stadium.
We ended the night by getting lost on the way back to our car. Not until we were deep in the 'hoods of Lexington did we decide to use the GPS on Chace's phone. Oh yeaaaaah... The GPeeeesssS....
Another highlight of the week was getting a tour of the Vols locker room. It is gorgeous!
Come on in!
It's a tradition to jump up and hit the Tennessee sign before leaving the locker room and running out onto the field.
And then we were able to walk out on the field.
As you know my parents and brother came down from SD to spend the week with us and we were going, going, going the minute I picked them up from the airport. One of the smaller, but no less important, highlights was waking up each morning and drinking coffee together as we caught up on everything and discussed what we would do for the day. (I was also reminded of the vast amount of coffee that my parents consume on a daily basis. We're talking, at least 3 pots were consumed every morning and Chace and I probably each had one cup each. MAYBE 1.5 cups each. So that leaves the rest of the 2.5 POTS for my mom and dad. I think I have a small inkling of where a lot of my mom's energy comes from...) Not only do I love just sitting around and having a good cup of coffee in the morning but it was great to share the time with my family and just...be.
Another highlight, which we will forever remember for a number of reasons, was going to the Kentucky/Vols football game. In Kentucky. I had told my mom that when they were here we would have to visit another state since we live so close to so many and we did! And this wasn't even a planned excursion initially but when I realized how close it actually was, I knew we had to do it because this would be the only opportunity for my parents to see a game. And I'm so glad we did! The Vols won in overtime and it was the last game of the season so that win clinched us a good bowl game.
Our quarterback Jonathan Crompton
It always cracks me up when the team does its pregame stretches.
Our coach Lane Kiffin - what always cracks me up about him is that it always looks like he's a little boy wearing daddy's clothes. His shirts are always HUGE!
And this would be the hubs.
I love telephoto lenses! It looks like I'm standing right next to him huh?
It was a little smoky from the Kentucky team's introduction... I think they did that on purpose so we couldn't see our own team enter the stadium.
We ended the night by getting lost on the way back to our car. Not until we were deep in the 'hoods of Lexington did we decide to use the GPS on Chace's phone. Oh yeaaaaah... The GPeeeesssS....
Another highlight of the week was getting a tour of the Vols locker room. It is gorgeous!
Come on in!
It's a tradition to jump up and hit the Tennessee sign before leaving the locker room and running out onto the field.And then we were able to walk out on the field.
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Tuesday, December 15, 2009
This year it'll be...
A Tender Tennessee Christmas for us. This song makes me feel like it should have always been a Tennessee Christmas. It makes me feel like it's even ok that I will most likely not see even a flake of snow.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Rainy Day
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| From December 2009 |
Today we woke up to sheets of rain. Well, DJ woke up to sheets of rain. I hunkered down all day and never actually saw any rain. Just the after effects, which I have to say I much prefer. Here are some shots from the "after effects."
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| From December 2009 |
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| From December 2009 |
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| From December 2009 |
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| From December 2009 |
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| From December 2009 |
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| From December 2009 |
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| From December 2009 |
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Sweet Potato Pie
I decided this year for Thanksgiving that I would try my hand at some real down home Southern cookin'. I had a huge list of recipes and ideas and Southern variations of the normal Thanksgiving foods all planned out but when it came right down to it, I only got to try one Southern food.
I may be adventurous and ready to give up old traditions for the sake of some new ones, but I discovered that I'm the only one in my family that shares those aspirations. Everyone else was happy as a cat to let good things go unchanged. You know the old saying "Why change something if there's nothing wrong with it" (or something like that...)? Well my family pretty much takes the phrase to heart and lives wholeheartedly by it. Which is totally cool. That's fine for them but I still have to experiment. I was just itching to try a new Southern recipe so I did it in a small way and said "No" to four different desserts for a total of 6 people that would be attending my Thanksgiving feast. I put my foot down by golly! (Well, pretty much. I did make a pumpkin pie too as a safeguard in case the sweet potato pie was a flop. I didn't want a mutiny on my hands!) And I think I made some converts to my way of life because they loved my new dessert! Good ol' sweet potato pie. See what happens when you step outside of your comfort zone and challenge those taste buds? (Who knew one could get so philosophical about pie??)
The recipe is so, so good because although yes, sweet potato pie is a lot like pumpkin pie, I tried to find a recipe that would stand on its own and not necessarily be "just like pumpkin pie". This pie has a graham cracker crust and very simple ingredients, which is also great because who wants to make something complicated when it's just going to get scarfed down as soon as it cools slightly from the oven?
Here's the recipe! Tell me if you try it and what you think of it!
Sweet Potato Pie
Makes:
1 (9-inch) pie, 8 servings
Ingredients:
2 sweet potatoes, about 10 ounces each
1 3/4 cups fine graham cracker crumbs (about 15 whole crackers, finely ground) (I use cinnamon flavor)
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), melted
2 large eggs
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Wrap the sweet potatoes tightly in 2 layers of aluminum foil and roast them in the oven until very soft, about 1 hour and 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
In a bowl, stir the graham cracker crumbs and brown sugar until well combined. Add the butter and mix until the crumbs are evenly moistened. Press firmly and evenly on the bottom and sides of a 9-inch pie plate to create a crust, being sure there are no cracks. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes or until golden. Remove from the oven.
Meanwhile, make the filling: Unwrap the potatoes and peel them. Put the flesh into a bowl and mash well with a fork. Add the eggs, 1/2 cup brown sugar, cream, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla and whip until very smooth with a whisk. Pour the filling into the partially baked crust. Sprinkle about 1 tablespoon brown sugar over top and bake in the center of the oven until set, about 40 minutes.
Allow the pie to cool completely before cutting. Serve at room temperature.
(I found this recipe on foodnetwork.com.)
I may be adventurous and ready to give up old traditions for the sake of some new ones, but I discovered that I'm the only one in my family that shares those aspirations. Everyone else was happy as a cat to let good things go unchanged. You know the old saying "Why change something if there's nothing wrong with it" (or something like that...)? Well my family pretty much takes the phrase to heart and lives wholeheartedly by it. Which is totally cool. That's fine for them but I still have to experiment. I was just itching to try a new Southern recipe so I did it in a small way and said "No" to four different desserts for a total of 6 people that would be attending my Thanksgiving feast. I put my foot down by golly! (Well, pretty much. I did make a pumpkin pie too as a safeguard in case the sweet potato pie was a flop. I didn't want a mutiny on my hands!) And I think I made some converts to my way of life because they loved my new dessert! Good ol' sweet potato pie. See what happens when you step outside of your comfort zone and challenge those taste buds? (Who knew one could get so philosophical about pie??)
The recipe is so, so good because although yes, sweet potato pie is a lot like pumpkin pie, I tried to find a recipe that would stand on its own and not necessarily be "just like pumpkin pie". This pie has a graham cracker crust and very simple ingredients, which is also great because who wants to make something complicated when it's just going to get scarfed down as soon as it cools slightly from the oven?
Here's the recipe! Tell me if you try it and what you think of it!
Sweet Potato Pie
Makes:
1 (9-inch) pie, 8 servings
Ingredients:
2 sweet potatoes, about 10 ounces each
1 3/4 cups fine graham cracker crumbs (about 15 whole crackers, finely ground) (I use cinnamon flavor)
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), melted
2 large eggs
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Wrap the sweet potatoes tightly in 2 layers of aluminum foil and roast them in the oven until very soft, about 1 hour and 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
In a bowl, stir the graham cracker crumbs and brown sugar until well combined. Add the butter and mix until the crumbs are evenly moistened. Press firmly and evenly on the bottom and sides of a 9-inch pie plate to create a crust, being sure there are no cracks. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes or until golden. Remove from the oven.
Meanwhile, make the filling: Unwrap the potatoes and peel them. Put the flesh into a bowl and mash well with a fork. Add the eggs, 1/2 cup brown sugar, cream, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla and whip until very smooth with a whisk. Pour the filling into the partially baked crust. Sprinkle about 1 tablespoon brown sugar over top and bake in the center of the oven until set, about 40 minutes.
Allow the pie to cool completely before cutting. Serve at room temperature.
(I found this recipe on foodnetwork.com.)
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